Photo: Andrawaag · CC BY-SA 4.0Crime per resident in Big Lakes County runs higher than in 92% of Canadian towns
Violence accounts for an index of 179 and other offences for 164, against usual levels of 85.7 and 62.8. That puts it at D for safety, judged on crime the police covering Big Lakes County reported from 2023 to 2025: #452 of 474 in Alberta. On top of that, typical years here bring 35.9 violent incidents plus 67.4 incidents of property crime per 1,000 residents, against 12.9 plus 31.2 in the typical town its size.
Statistics Canada, police-reported crime, 2023–2025 means. The index weighs each crime by its seriousness; rates are incidents per 1,000 residents a year. Data for crime severity, crime rate and incident counts covers the Faust detachment area.
What stands out about safety in Big Lakes County
Mischief: high for a town its size
Big Lakes County records 25.6 incidents of mischief per 1,000 residents a year, against 4.9 in the typical town among Canadian towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people. By type ↓
A higher index than most towns its size
Counting up from the lowest index, Big Lakes County is 39th of the 40 Canadian towns closest in population. Towns its size ↓
Higher than most of Alberta
Set among Alberta’s towns, whose median is 110, Big Lakes County scores 167.3. Towns its size ↓
Written from Statistics Canada’s police-reported crime by police service and detachment, 2023–2025. Figures are what police recorded, not convictions.
The grade: D for Big Lakes County
The grade weighs the Crime Severity Index and its violent half, averaged over 2023–2025, against every Canadian town and city neighbourhood of 1,000 people or more.
Its place: #452 of 474 in Alberta and #2,483 of 2,572 Canadian towns.
The Crime Severity Index and its two halves, beside the typical figure for Canadian towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people.
Which crimes make up Big Lakes County’s figures
Against the typical town its size, Big Lakes County runs highest on mischief (25.6 per 1,000 against 4.9), break and enter (11.4 per 1,000 against 2.8) and motor vehicle theft (10.4 per 1,000 against 2.6). Theft under $5,000 sits below it.
Every Statistics Canada violation line
| Violation | Incidents a year | Per 1,000 | Cleared |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homicide | 0 | 0 | — |
| Sexual violations against children | 0.7 | 0.5 | — |
| Assaults against a peace officer | 0.3 | 0.3 | — |
| Firearms: use, discharge, pointing | 0.7 | 0.5 | — |
| Robbery | 0.3 | 0.3 | — |
| Forcible confinement or kidnapping | 0.7 | 0.5 | — |
| Other violent violations | 1.7 | 1.3 | — |
| Breaking and entering | 15 | 11.4 | 5% |
| Possession of stolen property | 2.3 | 1.8 | — |
| Theft of a motor vehicle | 13.7 | 10.4 | 9% |
| Theft over $5,000 | 1.3 | 1 | — |
| Theft under $5,000 | 14 | 10.6 | 21% |
| Mischief | 33.7 | 25.6 | 28% |
| Weapons violations | 2.7 | 2 | — |
| Administration of justice violations | 6 | 4.6 | 72% |
| Other Criminal Code violations | 5.3 | 4 | 19% |
| Drug violations | 1 | 0.8 | — |
| Impaired driving | 11 | 8.4 | 18% |
| Failing to stop or remain | 0.3 | 0.3 | — |
Statistics Canada’s violation groups for the whole police service or detachment, incidents a year its own. Cleared: incidents solved by a charge or otherwise, as a share of those reported.
Incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 means, against the typical figure for Canadian towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people.
By its index, Big Lakes County stands 39th of 40 towns its size
| # | Town | People | Severity index | Violent index | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Northern Bruce Peninsula Ontario | 5,018 | 29.3 | 46.7 | A+ |
| … | |||||
| 12 | Carstairs Alberta | 5,248 | 54.8 | 78.3 | B |
| … | |||||
| 18 | Didsbury Alberta | 5,185 | 59.9 | 69.6 | B− |
| … | |||||
| 35 | Kneehill County Alberta | 5,129 | 110.8 | 105.9 | C− |
| 36 | Antigonish Nova Scotia | 5,175 | 115.4 | 123.5 | C− |
| 37 | Tyendinaga Ontario | 5,005 | 131.9 | 280.3 | D |
| 38 | Oliver British Columbia | 5,262 | 132.5 | 95.2 | D |
| 39 | Big Lakes County Alberta | 5,106 | 167.3 | 179 | D |
| 40 | Nipawin Saskatchewan | 5,033 | 182.3 | 163.9 | D |
The 40 Canadian towns of 2,500+ people closest in population; city neighbourhoods, city totals and reserves are left out. Towns on one police service or detachment share its index.
The Canadian towns closest to Big Lakes County in population, the lowest Crime Severity Index first (2023–2025 means).
1,330 residents, about 47 violent incidents a year: the police area Big Lakes County belongs to, 2023–2025
Violent incidents per 1,000 a year, 2023–2025
Property crimes per 1,000 a year, 2023–2025
Statistics Canada counts actual incidents; those police record as unfounded are listed apart and kept out of its crime rates and severity index. Each incident is filed under its most serious violation, which the survey sets partly by the maximum penalty.
Add about 89 property crimes and 45 other violations a year (2023–2025 average). The grid is 1,000 residents, a coloured dot for each incident a year at these rates.
Big Lakes County’s index year by year
Crime Severity Index
At 186.1, 2024 topped the three years, and 2023 was lowest at 152. In the same years the typical Canadian town its size read 74.3 (2023), then 64.2 (2025).
Every year as a table
| Year | Big Lakes County | Typical town its size |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 163.7 | 64.2 |
| 2024 | 186.1 | 68.8 |
| 2023 | 152 | 74.3 |
Statistics Canada, Crime Severity Index by police service, each year as published. Typical: the median of Canadian towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people.
The Crime Severity Index of the police covering Big Lakes County, each year, against the typical Canadian town its size.
Crime in the places around Big Lakes County
| Town | People | Severity index | Violent index | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Big Lakes County | 5,106 | 167.3 | 179 | D |
| High Prairie (22 km) | 2,607 | 334.5 | 521.9 | D− |
| Falher (67 km) | 1,084 | 91.3 | 73 | C |
| Smoky River No. 130 (71 km) | 1,941 | 91.3 | 73 | C |
Big Lakes County sits above 2 of the 3 neighbours with figures of their own. Closest is Falher, 67.2 km away, at 91.3 to 167.3 here.
Each place’s police figures, 2023–2025 means. Big Lakes County has few close neighbours with figures, so the list reaches 22–71 km out.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- An index, not a verdict. Police-reported incidents, each multiplied by a weight drawn from court sentences, summed and divided by the population: that is the index, and its makers attach a caution, “The CSI is not an indicator of overall safety and should be interpreted in the broader community context.”
- A small police area. About 1,327 people live in the area these figures cover; at that size one bad year shows up large. Statistics Canada says: “Data for police services or detachments with populations less than 5,000 should be used with caution.”
- Shared with the countryside. An RCMP or OPP detachment reports one set of figures for everywhere it polices, so Big Lakes County’s are shared with its surroundings.
- The index’s scale. Canada’s own index has been below its 2006 base of 100 for years, so 100 marks a fixed reference, not today’s national average.
- What clearance means. Police clear an incident by charging someone, recommending a charge, or closing it another way. The rate weighs serious crimes more, as the index does.
Questions about safety in Big Lakes County
Is Big Lakes County safe?
With 35.9 violent incidents and 67.4 property crimes per 1,000 residents a year, Big Lakes County comes to 167.3 on the Crime Severity Index (2023–2025); Canadian towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people have a median of 68.5.
What is the most common crime in Big Lakes County?
Top of the list is mischief (25.6 per 1,000 residents a year); assault, at 21.2, and other Criminal Code offences, at 18, follow.
Is crime going up in Big Lakes County?
It went up 8% between 2023 and 2025, from 152 to 163.7. The police area is small or partly reported, so treat the change with care.
How much of Big Lakes County’s crime do police solve?
Police solve 61% of violent crime and 18% of everything else, 31% overall once each crime is weighted by seriousness, against 34% for the typical Canadian town its size.
Whose figures are these?
A police service or detachment that covers Big Lakes County and other places, so the figures are shared.
Source: Statistics Canada, police-reported crime by police service and detachment, 2023–2025 (Statistics Canada Open Licence); TownRatings calculation.
Sources: Statistics Canada, Crime severity index and weighted clearance rates, police services (tables 35-10-0186 to 0190, 0061, 0063, 0064), 2023–2025 · Statistics Canada, Incident-based crime statistics by detailed violations, police services (35-10-0178 to 0185) · Safety Grade: TownRatings calculation. Under the Statistics Canada Open Licence.
Adapted from Statistics Canada (Census of Population 2021, population estimates 2025, 2021 census boundaries) under the Statistics Canada Open Licence; this does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada. Neighbourhood names in some cities © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).